State police: Car hit but it's likely not a bullet

The image was created by a forensics specialist based on information described by an Ingham County shooting victim. The witness was also able to describe the suspected shooter’s vehicle in the Oct. 18 incident. The witness said the suspected vehicle resembles a 1998 Oldsmobile Alero or Toyota Camry.

Three possible incidents have upped the count of reported random shootings along Interstate 96 to at least 24, and this weekend has seen someone injured.

Michigan State Police Lt. Mike Shaw in Brighton said Monday afternoon that some type of “projectile” likely hit the car of a woman driving earlier in the day on U.S. 23 near Interstate 96.

Investigators were already busy after the shootings escalated from what had been property damage and wrecked nerves. In the days leading up to Oct. 18, 22 incidents of random shooting had been reported, but no one had been struck or injured.

On Saturday, Michigan State Police and Livingston County deputies were sent to the scene of shots reportedly fired on I-96 in Fowlerville.

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Scott Arnold, a traveling salesman from the Kalamazoo area, was hit after his Nissan Murano was shot at while he was en route to the World Series game in Detroit.

The bullet reportedly went through the driver’s side door of Arnold’s SUV as he was driving along the highway, striking him in the buttocks.

A second shooting was reported Saturday as well, according to the Oakland County Sheriff’s Office.

Arnold is the first victim who has been injured in the string of two dozen shootings in four different counties in Mid-Michigan.

The Oakland County Sheriff’s Office Forensic Laboratory has determined that ballistic evidence from shootings reported in Oakland, Livingston and Ingham counties have come from the same weapon, according to a release from the Wixom Police Department.

More than 400 tips have been called in to the task force charged with investigating the random shooting incidents that happened in Oakland and three other counties the week of Oct. 16.

The investigation involves a shooter who possibly drives a Chevrolet Cavalier, Ford Mustang or Dodge Charger. The Oakland County Sheriff’s Office has also released a sketch of the possible suspect. It shows a man in his 30s with close-cropped hair and stubble on his face.

Arnold, who lives in Delton, Mich., works for plastic resin company M. Holland, according to reports.

The Bureau of Alcohol, Firearms and Tobacco and the Crime Stoppers of Mid-Michigan are collectively offering a $12,000 reward for information leading to the arrest and conviction of the suspect — or suspects — responsible.

Anyone with information involving this case or the suspect is urged to call 1-800-SPEAK-UP.